Man charged after apparently dumping urine on altar of Lakeville church during weekend service

With a jar filled with what is suspected to be urine, a man walked to the front of a Lakeville church during a weekend service and poured it all over the altar and a holy book, authorities said.

"I hate Christians," Steven Richard Fay shouted as an off-duty police officer and a parishioner at All Saints Catholic Church held him until police arrived, stated a criminal complaint filed Tuesday.

Fay, 34, who has a history of mental illness, was charged in Dakota County District Court with felony second-degree property damage.

Although the estimated damage of $550 usually earns a gross misdemeanor charge, Fay's case was charged as a felony because he targeted a religious institution, Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said.

"It could be construed as a hate-related crime," Backstrom said.

Typically, such a crime becomes a felony when property damage exceeds $1,000.

All Saints was a third-full Saturday evening when the incident happened, said the Rev. Thomas Wilson. It was the first time he had seen Fay at the church at 19795 Holyoke Ave.

Fay, of Lakeville, approached the altar during Mass, turned to face the parishioners and opened a jar "which contained a yellow-colored liquid believed to be urine," the complaint said. Fay then poured it onto the altar's linen and the Book of the Gospels, a volume of the four Gospels of the New Testament Bible.

As Fay tried to leave, an off-duty police officer from South Dakota identified himself to Fay and tried to arrest him, the charge said.

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But Fay began swinging at the officer.

Fay escaped the officer's grip by shedding a coat he was wearing. A parishioner then helped restrain Fay, who began shouting, 'I hate Christians,' the complaint said.

Estimated damage costs were $350 for the book and $200 for the linen, according to the charge. The damage also desecrated the religious materials, church officials said.

"It was quite likely that it was a mental illness issue," Wilson said.

The church made an announcement to its parish Sunday regarding the incident, Wilson said. However, he declined to comment more about what happened.

Fay has faced three mental illness-related civil commitment cases in Dakota County, according to court records. The cases happened between 1999 and 2008. Backstrom said he was in the process of tracking down more details, but at least one of those cases resulted in Fay being committed to a psychiatric facility.

A message to Fay's attorney was not immediately returned.

Fay was being held Tuesday at the Dakota County Jail in Hastings. A judge set bail at $40,000 without conditions or $20,000 with conditions, including no contact with the church.

Fay must also undergo a mental health evaluation. His next court hearing is set for May 9.